Many dog owners struggle to understand what foods they can safely feed their dogs. While many human foods aren’t safe for dogs, others provide health benefits for your pup. For example, you might wonder, are bananas good for dogs? Can dogs have bananas? Or can eating bananas harm dogs? Read on to learn more about why it’s safe to feed your dog bananas.
Safe to feed your dog bananas?
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Bananas are full of vitamins and minerals. Bananas include magnesium, Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, and potassium. Bananas also are high fiber foods. These vitamins and minerals are suitable for both humans and dogs.
If your dog has gastrointestinal problems, banana fiber can help to solve this problem. As there is magnesium in bananas, you can ensure healthy bone growth by feeding bananas to your dog. Also, magnesium helps absorb vitamins.
So, the simple answer to this question is yes, and you can feed your dog bananas. However, you should only feed your dog bananas in moderation because bananas are full of sugar. If you provide bananas often, your dog may become fatty and unhealthy.
Can dogs eat banana peels?
The answer to this question is no. Banana peels are not toxic but may cause digestive blockage in your dog. As a result, your dog may become sick, and you may have to take your dog to a vet.
That’s why before feeding bananas to your dog, make sure that you dispose of the banana peel where your dog cannot reach.
First time feeding a banana to dogs
You have to be careful when you feed your dog bananas for the first time. Don’t let your dog eat the whole banana.
Watch your dog for any signs of allergic reactions.
If your dog is overweight, diabetic, or suffers from high blood pressure, don’t feed them bananas, which are naturally high in sugar.
To know about what is best for your dog, you should consult with your vet. But if your dog is healthy, consider adding small amounts of banana to his diet because
Boosts immune system
Bananas contain Vitamin C, which fights against inflammation, arthritis, infections, kennel cough, and glaucoma. Also, Vitamin C helps your dog to recover from injuries faster. Besides, it boosts the immune system of your dog. However, dogs can produce Vitamin C by themselves.
But as they age, they stop producing Vitamin C by themselves. Once they do, you’ll have to feed Vitamin C to keep your dog’s immunity system in check, and the fruit can be a good option for that.
Improves blood vessel and heart function
Banana is enriched with potassium. In a medium-sized banana, your dog will get 400 to 420 mg of potassium. Potassium improves blood vessel and heart function. Due to a lack of potassium, many dogs have a low heartbeat, which is a sign of arrhythmia. But feeding your dog bananas can help alleviate this problem.
Potassium has some other benefits as well. For example, potassium helps build muscle, keeps the kidney in good condition, and regulates fluid levels.
Potassium also helps to maintain good bone density in your dog. As your dog ages, its bone density starts to decrease.
Reduces constipation
Fiber is helpful for both dogs and humans. If your dog is having digestive trouble such as diarrhea, or constipation, consider whether to feed your dog bananas.
The fiber helps fix digestive problems in your dog and make your dog healthy.
Improves the dog’s skin
Bananas contain biotin or Vitamin B7, which gives your dog a glow and shine. Also, you’ll notice significant positive changes in your dog’s coat.
Besides skin and coat benefits, biotin improves your dog’s metabolism, cardiovascular function, and nerve function, which will help give your dog a long, healthy life.
Improves sleep cycle
Vitamin B6 is loaded in bananas, which increases melatonin in your dog’s body. Melatonin is a hormone that controls the sleep cycle. When the melatonin is low in the body, your dog will have sleeping problems.
But melatonin will increase if your dog eats bananas regularly. That will help improve your dog’s sleep cycle and get good sleep.
If your dog has irregular sleep, try to feed your dog bananas. You should notice drastic changes in a few days.
Ready to feed your dog bananas?
Bananas are a good source of minerals and vitamins. That’s why you can feed them to your dog without any hesitation. However, make sure your dog isn’t allergic to bananas and doesn’t eat the peel. Also, remember to give the fruit to your dog in moderation.
Priotosh Karmakar is a frequent traveler, vlogger, and multilingual lawyer. Even though English is his first language, he spent the better part of his college days in Spain. That’s when he realized there’s more to see than just his city. Since then, he has been practicing law, and every chance he gets, he leaves his city to travel. And he never forgets to film his adventures for his vlog channel. He enjoys social media, walking, gardening, and dogs.